Lauren looks at her
seven year old son who was quietly sitting at the kitchen table doing
his homework. "Yes Ian?"

"Why do you wear
a ring if you and Dad aren't married?"

Lauren tilts her head,
"What brought this on?"

Ian shrugs "Just
wondering."

Lauren looks at the
platinum band on her ring finger with a large diamond and smiles
slightly, "I guess neither of us really thought of legalizing
our relationship. As for the ring your Dad has a tendency to get
angry when other men assume I'm single thus the ring." Lauren
shrugs knowing her son's high intelligence would quickly absorb and
analyze the information. 'Just like his Daddy.' She smiles fondly.
"Besides your Daddy and I love each other no matter what and
marriage wouldn't change things."

Ian nods "Why do
Sophia and I have different names?"

"Because I was
married before and her father refuses to sign the papers legally
changing her name. As for why you have my name... just made things
easier I guess." She regards her son, "Does that bother
you?"

Ian shrugs, "Not
really. I was just curious."

Lauren nods

"Where's Sophia?"
Ian asks

"She called Daddy
and asked him to pick her up from school."

"Oh" Ian
nods "Why do we go to different schools?" He asks

"Wow you are full
of questions today." Lauren laughs

Ian shrugs

"Well Daddy and I
decided we'd send you two to schools that fit your personalities."

"Oh"

"Anymore
questions?"

"No" Ian
turns to his homework.

SAME TIME: SCHOOL

Sark walks up the
steps where eleven year old Sophia is sitting and joins her, "Why
didn't you want your Mother to pick you up?"

Sophia shrugs

Sark notices her
expression, "What's wrong? You've been quiet these last few
days."

"Thinking"
Sophia says

"About?"
Sark prompts

"Where's Dad?"

Sark sighs, "Sophia
this is something you need to talk to your Mum about."

"She always
changes the subject." Sophia argues. "I'm not five."

Sark smiles "I
know."

"So where is he?
And why can't I see him?"

"Well he's in
lockup in LA."

"For what?"

"Remember that
vacation you took with him?"

Sophia nods "He
wouldn't let me call Mama."

"When he left his
job he took some items he wasn't supposed to take."

"What?"

"Files"

"On what?"

"You know how
your Mum used to work for the CIA?"

Sophia nods "Dad
did too."

Sark nods "He
took some files from work that weren't supposed to leave."

"So that's why he
got into trouble?"

"Yes"

"Then why isn't
he out?"

"Because they
don't trust him to keep the secrets he's supposed to keep."

"Why can't I see
him?"

"Your Mum doesn't
think that it is a good idea."

"Do you think
that it is a bad idea?"

"This is your
Mum's choice Baby girl. I have no say."

"What is he like?
I don't remember much about him."

"I'm not the one
you should ask these questions too." Sark says hesitantly. 'I
bloody hate the bastard.'

"Not really. I
mean I did when I was little but now... I don't as much as I did."
Sophia sighs. "I just wonder about him sometimes."

"Understandable."
Sark nods "Is this what has been on your mind?"

Sophia shrugs
"Mostly."

"Anything else?"

"No."

"Good. Now let's
go home." Sark kisses her head standing he picks up Sophia's
backpack, "How was school?" He listens intently as the girl
talks.

EVENING

"She asked about
Vaughn"

Lauren stiffens "What
about him?"

"She's curious."
Sark shrugs "It's not like we talk about him. And she hasn't
seen him since she was four."

"I think we
should just tell her"

"Tell who what?"
Sophia asks walking in on the end of the conversation.

"Nothing"
Sark says quickly "Homework?"

"Done."
Sophia looks between her parents "What's going on?"

"Nothing honey."
Lauren lies

"OK" Sophia
shrugs walking out of the kitchen.

"I don't want to
discuss this."

"We need to
discuss it." Sark argues. "She's eleven Lauren."

"This could be
dealt with if you would stop being so stubborn about keeping your
promise!" Lauren says angrily as she throws a glass at him.

"You were the one
who wanted to stay!" Sark argues after ducking to avoid the
glass. "I asked you to come with me but you chose to stay."
He says angrily, "You chose him over us."

"You think I
liked making that choice!" Lauren exclaims. "I hated that
choice!"

"Well you made
it." He says snidely only to get slapped

"You have no idea
how hard that decision was! You have no idea the nights I spent
crying because you weren't there when I needed you!"

"You could have
left him Lauren, but you thought staying he'd love you as much as he
loved Bristow."

"Go to hell"
Lauren storms out of the kitchen

Sark winces realizing
what he said, "Bloody hell." He mutters rubbing his
forehead. 'Way to go Julian. Reminded the woman you love that her
ex-husband loved someone more than her.'

WHILE LATER

"Mum would yell
at you for smoking."

Sark glances at his
son as he lights another cigarette, "Homework done?"

"Uh huh. Sophia's
watching TV and won't share." Ian sits beside his father on the
steps. "Smoking is bad for you."

"I know."

"Dad"

"Hmm"

"I hate when you
and Mum fight."

Sark sighs grinding
out the cigarette on the step "Sorry." He ruffles Ian's
hair, "We just had a small argument. We'll patch it up."

"Promise?"

"Promise."
He kisses the top of his son's head.

"Ian"

Ian looks over his
shoulder, "Hi Mum"

"Go inside
please." Lauren says

Ian looks at his Dad
then stands walking into the house.

Lauren takes her son's
place as the door closes, "Sorry"

"So am I."

"I never chose
Michael over us."

"A large part of
me knows that... I just..." He takes a drag of his cigarette
"The day you said that it would be best if we have no contact I
wanted... I wanted to rip his head off. I knew you were unhappy...
and he was the cause of it. I knew that you staying with him would
cause you more unhappiness." He takes her hand bringing it to
his lips, "I knew you were happier with me. I knew I could make
you happy... if I had the chance to give you the life you and Sophia
deserved back then."

"God I wish we
had met before Michael." Lauren sighs heavily as she rests her
head on his shoulder.

"Only good thing
that prick ever did was bring you into my life." Sark drops a
kiss to her head. "If it wasn't for meeting you and falling in
love with you... I don't think I'd be alive."

"Hard to believe
we fell in love in the course of seeking revenge on Michael and
Sydney." Lauren sighs

"Mmm"

"I can't Julian"

"Can't what?"

"Keep it from
her. She deserves to know the truth."

"How is telling
her going to change things?" Sark asks grinding out his
cigarette.

"We agreed... and
she needs to know." Lauren squeezes his hand "She's old
enough."

Sark takes a deep
breath, "All right." He relents

"Ian has his
study group after school tomorrow."

Sark nods

"Why are you so
scared to tell her?"

Sark looks at their
laced fingers, "One of the few things that scares me is her
hating me for keeping this a secret from her."

"She'd get over
it. She adores you... always has. Since the first time you watched
cartoons with her I knew she adored you. She may be upset but she'd
get over it."

"The first time I
saw her in your arms... was in a picture one of my sources had taken.
It was the day you left the hospital."

"Really?"

Sark nods "When I
saw that picture I needed to see her... touch her."

"I'm glad you
came to see her. I knew you would see her but I didn't know when or
how. I didn't know if you'd come see her when we were asleep. I'm
glad you came that night."

"No." Lauren
sighs. "I know you don't. But I also know that when people refer
to me as your wife you never correct them." She points out
looking at her finger as he absently twists the ring. "Ian asked
why we aren't married"

"What did you
say?"

"That legality
doesn't matter to us."

"It doesn't
bother you?" Sark asks hesitantly.

"It's just a
piece of paper" Lauren shrugs "does it bother you?"

"No." Sark
brings her hand to his lips "You are mine with or without the
piece of paper." He says possessively.

Lauren smiles "I
know" she leans in kissing him lightly "Can you understand
why I can't keep this from her anymore?"

Sark closes his eyes,
'I can't have my little girl hate me.' He nods

"She'll
understand... once we explain."

"I hope so."
He murmurs

4AM

Lauren awakens
startled by the sound of a ringing phone.

Sark blindly grabs the
offending phone, "What?" He growls

Lauren rolls over
looking at Sark who is looking annoyed.

"Fine" He
hangs up muttering under his breath.

"What's going
on?"

"I have to go."

"Where?"

"They want me to
track down an old source for some information."

"Can't you do
that from here?"

"No."

"Where are you
going?"

"Prague. I should
be back in a few days."

"Julian"
Lauren protests "what about"

Sark rubs his
forehead, "Bloody hell"

"Call back and
tell them no"

"I can't. Besides
they will just remind me that I have no say on when and where I go."
Sark points out.

"Damn it Julian I
can't keep this from her another day!"

Sark sighs, "Then
tell her."

"What? We should
tell her together"

"Unless you can
wait a few days... there's no choice. Its four in the bloody morning
and I don't want to wake her."

"Fine I will tell
her... alone." Lauren turns her back to him.

Sark stares at her
then gets out of bed walking to the bathroom.

7AM

"Where is Dad?"
Sophia asks surprised to find her father absent from the kitchen.

"He had to go
take care of something." Lauren answers

"Can I go to
Katie's after school?" Sophia asks as she pours herself some
orange juice.

"Not today honey.
I need to talk to you about something."

"Sophia is
grounded" Ian says amused.

"Shut up brat."
Sophia glares at her brother. "Am I in trouble?"

"No." Lauren
assures "I thought we could spend some time together."

Sophia nods

"When is Dad
going to be home Mum?" Ian asks

"He thought
tomorrow. He's not sure how long though." Lauren sets the plates
before the kids, "Eat up."

4PM: HOUSE

"So what did you
want to talk about?" Sophia asks as she settles at the kitchen
table watching her Mom work nervously around the kitchen.

Lauren looks at her
daughter "Why don't we talk in the living room." She heads
into the living room knowing her daughter will follow.

"What's going on
Mama?" Sophia asks settling on the couch.

Laure takes a deep
breath as she sits beside her daughter, "I had hoped to talk to
you about this with Julian but" she shrugs

"What is it?"

"I think its time
for us to discuss some things." Lauren says nervously, "We
wanted to wait until you were older but I can't keep it anymore. I
need to tell you the full truth."

"About what?"

"The past."
Lauren takes a deep breath, "I met Michael thirteen years ago
when I was living in Los Angeles. He had just returned from a
self-imposed exile after his girlfriend, Sydney, had disappeared. I
liked him immediately. I knew he was still in love with Sydney but I
waited it out. A year after we met he asked me to marry him. We were
happy and in love." She smiles sadly, "But six months into
our marriage Sydney returned. Everyone was stunned... Michael as
well." She pauses "It was hard on everyone... mostly Sydney
I believe. She didn't know how long she had been gone... and she
returned to find Michael married. All of us were trying to work
through things."

"But you and Dad
stayed together."

Lauren nods "But
he was feeling guilty over what happened to Sydney so he was spending
time helping her out."

"Did he still
love her?"

Lauren nods "He
couldn't admit it for a long time but he did."

"What happened?"

"He was spending
so much time with Sydney and helping her that I felt like he was
pulling away from me... cheating on me."

"Was he?"

"To this day he
says no but I didn't care. I knew something was going on. One night I
received a picture from someone of Michael and Sydney kissing. I was
furious but I had no idea what to do. My life spun out of control...
I met someone who was as angry as I was over everything."

"Who?"

"Julian"

Sophia frowns "You
met Julian when you were married to Dad?"

Lauren nods "He
knew Michael from... work."

"Dad and Julian
worked together?"

"Somewhat."
Lauren replies

"What happened?"

"We fell in
love."

"You were already
married." Sophia protests

"I know but
Michael wasn't in love with me... not in the way I wanted or
deserved. He was in love with Sydney. I did love Michael and I
thought..." she takes a deep breath, "I thought staying
with him and raising you would make him pull away from Sydney... even
if I had to lie and push away a man who loved me as much as I loved
him."

"I couldn't. I
knew if Michael found out I was pregnant he'd take you"

"But I wasn't
his"

"We didn't know
for sure until you were born. By then I had already forced Julian out
of my life."

"He's known since
the beginning?"

Lauren nods "He
wanted me to leave Michael... almost begged me to." She swallows
"But I couldn't do it. I couldn't risk people finding out Julian
was your father. I couldn't risk loosing you AND Julian. I knew if I
left Michael he would find us... he would find out the truth and I
would be in a lot of trouble. But the terrifying part was the fact I
could lose you... I couldn't risk it."

"So you stayed
with a man you didn't love and lied to him!"

Lauren nods

"Do Grandma and
Grandpa know?"

"Grandma thinks
you were the result of a one time affair. Grandpa knows the truth."

"Nana?"

Lauren swallows
heavily and nods, "Michael told her a few years ago... she
confronted me but I begged her to keep quiet. She loves you despite
the truth. You're still a Vaughn."

"Why am I still a
Vaughn if I'm not one?"

"Michael refused
to sign the papers terminating his rights, and allowing me to legally
change your name to Reed, unless I signed papers saying that you will
never refer to Julian as your father... and that I never tell you the
truth." She looks at her ring, "I couldn't do it. I swore
the day Julian left that I'd tell you the truth one day."

"I hate you!"
Sophia says coldly before bolting out of the living room.

Lauren drops on the
couch tears falling. 'My baby hates me.'

Slamming the door
behind her Sophia grabs the nearest object a book and throws it on
the floor.

Downstairs Lauren
winces hearing the sounds of her daughter's temper... her father's
temper the few times she has seen him loose it completely. "Oh
God." She sobs curling up on the couch letting the tears fall.

Sophia grabs the
remote for her stereo and turns to the rock station turning it on as
loud as she can handle it before dropping on the bed letting the
tears out. 'My whole life has been a lie. I'm not who I thought I
was.'

COUPLE HOURS LATER

"Mum" Ian
walks into the kitchen

"Hey sweetie. How
was your day?" Lauren looks at her son.

"Did you and Dad
have another fight?" Ian asks seeing the sadness and the results
of her tears.

Sophia stares up at
the ceiling ignoring the music pounding in her room. When she notices
the door open she glares at her brother, "Get out!" She
screams

"Dinners ready"

"GET OUT!"
She grabs the nearest item a dictionary throwing it at her brother.

Ian quickly closes the
door heading to his own room "Bad mood I guess." He mutters

Hearing footsteps
Lauren smiles at her son "Washed up?"

Ian nods "She
threw a book at me."

"She's upset."

"Why?"

"I had to tell
her something."

"What could get
her that angry?"

Lauren sighs 'I might
as well tell him before Sophia does.' "Sit down" once Ian
sits at the table Lauren sits in the chair next to him, "You
know how I told you I was married before?"

"To Sophia's
Dad." Ian nods

"Michael isn't
Sophia's biological father."

"I don't
understand"

"Sophia's not
your half sister Ian."

"You mean Dad's
really her Dad?"

Lauren nods

"Is that why she
was so angry?"

Lauren nods watching
her son close as he absorbs the information. "I know this is a
surprise." She says hesitantly not wanting another of her
children to become angry with her.

"Its fine with me
Mum." Ian smiles

"Thanks honey"
Lauren smiles standing she walks back to the stove. 'At least one of
my children won't hate me.' She thinks sadly.

COUPLE HOURS LATER

Hearing that the
stereo is off, Lauren knocks on the door then opens the door to find
her daughter lying on the bed staring up at the ceiling. "Sophia"
she looks around the room wincing at the disaster of her daughter's
temper.

"Get out"

"Sophia" she
winces when Sophia looks at her.

"Get out"
Sophia says coldly

"Sophia"

Sophia sits up, "I
don't want to talk to you! I don't want to see you! Get the hell out
of my room!"

Lauren walks out of
the room closing the door she leans against it.

"She'll get over
it Mom." Ian says from the doorway of his bedroom.

"I know."
Lauren says sadly "Go to bed all right?"

Ian nods "Night
Mum."

"Sleep well Ian."
Lauren smiles at her son before heading to the master bedroom and
dropping on the bed tears falling. 'She hates me.'

NEXT MORNING

"She said she's
not going and to leave her alone." Ian informs his Mom.

Lauren looks at the
stairs sadly. "Lets go you'll be late."

HOUR LATER

"Ready to talk?"
Lauren asks as she finds her daughter in the kitchen eating.

Sophia remains silent
obviously ignoring her Mother.

"Don't be a
bloody brat!" Lauren says angrily.

"What did you
expect Mother! That I'd automatically forgive you for lying to me my
whole life!"

"No"

"Well I won't. If
I was older I'd be out the door! You lied to me!"

"I'm sorry
Sophia. I never wanted to hurt you"

"No you just
thought it was more convenient not to tell me." Sophia says
coldly dropping the bowl in the sink before walking out of the
kitchen.

"Lauren you
couldn't have expected her to be jumping for joy to find out her
whole life was a lie." Sark says gently.

"She's locked
herself in her room for most of the day. Only came out when I took
Ian to school and picked him up." Lauren closes her eyes, "I
had to tell her... even if this was the reaction. Even if she ends up
hating me for it."

"She doesn't hate
you Lauren. She's trying to process everything."

"I know. At least
Ian took it well." Lauren whispers. "When will you be
back?"

"Early tomorrow
morning."

"Good."
Lauren sniffles

4AM

Lauren stirs as she
hears the bedroom door open and close. She opens her eyes and smiles
sleepily seeing Sark, "Hi"

"Hello darling."
Sark sits on the edge of the bed, "It's early."

Lauren shrugs "I
missed you." She whispers

Sark leans down
kissing her forehead, "I missed you too." He smoothes her
hair back. "Why don't you go back to sleep... I'm going to take
a quick shower."

Lauren nods "I
love you"

"I love you too."

7:30

"Why don't you
take Ian to school and go shopping... see your friends." Sark
suggests as he watches Lauren clean up the breakfast mess.

"What about
Sophia? She obviously isn't going to go to school today." Lauren
says softly.

Sark sighs "Fine
I will tell you the truth... but I don't want you to mention this to
your brother... he's still too young for the whole story."

Sophia turns to look
at her father, "What?"

"When I met
Lauren I had just escaped from CIA custody." At Sophia's
surprised expression he shrugs. "At one time I was a spy... and
not for the CIA or British Intelligence. I worked for someone named
The Man... long story. I had made it high up on the Most Wanted
list... until the CIA caught me around the time one of their prized
agents disappeared. An agent who dated Vaughn... Sydney Bristow. They
believed she was dead well everyone but Vaughn and her father… but
soon Vaughn began to believe it as well and married your Mum. Two
years later she returned with missing time and memories."

"Where were you?"

"Lock-up the
whole time, bloody boring time." He laughs. "While I was in
lock up Vaughn met and married Lauren. I was going to be traded for
some CIA agents as well as some important information. The CIA had
hoped that they would able to keep me and get their agents... but
instead I was grabbed by the same men who had the agents because the
CIA bloody fucked up." He shakes his head, "The people who
took me wanted my inheritance... and became my employers for a time."

"When did you
meet Mum?"

"A few days
later... when I gave her ammunition that could destroy Vaughn's
beloved Agent Bristow. I had discovered that Agent Bristow had been
an agent for the people I had worked for, but that is an even longer
and more complicated story." Sark takes a deep breath, "The
second time I met Lauren we both had had a few drinks..." Sark
shakes his head, "It was supposed to be a one time thing but it
wasn't." He looks at Sophia and reaches out gently brushing her
hair back, "I stayed away for a few weeks but I couldn't."

"So you had an
affair."

Sark nods "We
told ourselves there were no emotions... it was revenge for both of
us. We believed it for a few months but it became more." He
shrugs, "I did the unthinkable for someone like myself... I fell
in love" He smiles wryly, "and she loved me as well. We
couldn't admit it but we both knew how we felt."

"When did you
tell her?"

"Around your
first birthday. I hadn't seen you in person... well that she knew
about... since you were a week old." He smiles sadly, "I
snuck into the house a few times... mostly when Vaughn was either
just back from a mission or not even around. Easiest way to keep from
being caught." He smiles sadly, "I would disable the alarm
system... feed his dumb dog a short sedative... and turn off the
monitor in your room. I'd watch you sleep for a while then go out the
same way I came in."

"How long did you
do that?"

"At least once a
month until you were two... I knew that the older you became the
easier you'd wake."

"Did Mum know?"

Sark shakes his head,
"She admitted she suspected my nightly visits... but she never
stopped me or did anything to prevent it." He notices Sophia's
blanket draped over the headboard and smiles pulling it down. "I
sent this to your Mum before you were born. To this day I still don't
know what drove me to buy it but I saw it when I was passing this
small children's store in Italy." He shrugs handing it to
Sophia. "We didn't want to lie Sophia... there wasn't any choice
in the matter... at least not one that wouldn't destroy Lauren's
life... and career... which in turn would have destroyed your life."
He gently brushes Sophia's hair back, "I didn't want that to
happen so... I stayed away." He smiles sadly. "After your
birthday I decided that it was time to leave the spy world and go
legitimate. So I took over my dead father's enterprises and made a
deal with the CIA."

"Why lie to me
these last eight years?" Sophia asks. "As you said he's not
getting out anytime soon."

"I'm a man of my
word... when he found out the truth I told him I wasn't going to tell
you any time soon." Sark answers

"Why not?"

Sark sighs, "Truth
is the man Vaughn was before Sydney's disappearance I had no problem
with him raising you. It was just the man he became the last few
years of their marriage I had a problem with."

"Meaning you
didn't want to be a Dad."

Sark winces "It
was never about not wanting to be your Dad... it was about everyone
else around... the ones who would have used you to get to me. I admit
some of it had to with the fact I was 24 and not ready abandon my
search for answers." He brushes her hair back, "We never
wanted to hurt you Sophia... we just wanted to protect you." He
smiles sadly, "All we ever wanted was to give you a life that
was safe. At the time acknowledging you were mine... would have
caused a lot of trouble for everyone."

Sophia rolls to her
side her back to Sark

"Sophia"

"Go 'way."
Sophia whispers

"Not until we
finish talking about this"

"I don't want to
talk about it anymore." She says stiffly trying to keep the
tears from falling.

Sark stares at her
still form sadly, "If you want to discuss this more you know
where to find me." He stands heading towards the door, "Oh
and Baby girl... I want you to pick up your room before you go to
school tomorrow." He closes the door behind him.

Sophia closes her eyes
tears falling once the door is closed.

EVENING

"She said she's
not hungry." Ian informs his parents as he joins them in the
kitchen.